Pesticides’ Taxonomy, Functioning, Their Associated Risks to Human and Environment, and Degradation Technologies

Pesticides are helping to meet up the demand for population growth in today's agriculture. They are also being utilized for numerous issues including domestic pests control, home gardening, and disease vectors. Though, they are extremely poisonous in nature. They also cast false impact on surroundings. When used for the agricultural purpose, their toxic residues are continually left behind, and thus forming a major origin of pollution. The unwanted risky chemical groups are contaminating natural assets at a shocking rate. Agricultural pesticides left behinds are among the most harmful contaminants to the soil and water. Removing them from wastewaters is critical as they have bioaccumulation potential, toxicity, and a high persistence. Pesticides have long been used to improve manufacturing efficiency and extend the shelf-life of food goods. Their residues should be removed from food products and waters to limit human pesticide exposure. To remove pesticides, various processes are usually employed which include the adsorption process, membrane processes, and improved oxidation reactions, while microorganisms degrade them naturally i.e. bioremediation/biodegradation. Many organic and inorganic materials have been fabricated for rapid and complete degradation of pesticides. Semiconductor materials contribute to the pesticide oxidation and reduction because they have a proclivity for producing radicals through the charge separation. This review focuses on the pesticides’ taxonomy, functioning, their associated risks to human and environment, and degradation methods involving the current discoveries and progress in the utilization of several approaches for their probable removal from wastewater. The advanced oxidation, adsorption, bioremediation, photocatalysis, semiconductor materials, phytoremediation, and membrane technologies are some of these processes discussed in this investigation. In the upcoming researches, it will be required to generate the novel concepts in the current farming that will reduce the need of toxic pesticides and enable manufacturing of selective to target and less persistent pesticides.